September is Suicide Prevention Month and it’s time for another H4HK Cheat Sheet to help people to better understand the issue of suicide and how they can help. So far, we’ve looked at Suicide Risk Factors and Warning Signs. The text of today’s cheat sheet is included below and a printable pdf version can be accessed by clicking the picture above.

Introduction

If you have a friend who you think is considering suicide, you may feel lost or wonder what the right thing to do is or whether you should do anything at all. While there is no one right thing to say or do, this cheat sheet will help you to have something to say when saying nothing can have dire consequences and to avoid doing things which are not helpful.

September is Suicide Prevention Month and it’s time for another H4HK Cheat Sheet to help people to better understand the issue of suicide and how they can help. Last week we looked at Suicide Risk Factors, and today we’re looking at Warning Signs. Check back next Tuesday for our final cheat sheet in this series. The text of today’s cheat sheet is included below and a printable pdf version can be accessed by clicking the picture above.

Introduction

Warning Signs of suicide are those things to watch out for in a person’s life and actions that may indicate they are contemplating or planning suicide. They are different than risk factors which are things about a person’s history and background that statistically make them more likely to commit suicide. It is important to consider both the warning signs (current and specific to an individual) and the risk factors (historic and based on a person’s experiences) when assessing their risk of suicide.

IS PATH WARM

September is Suicide Prevention Month and we are introducing a series of H4HK Cheat Sheets to help people to better understand the issue of suicide and how they can help. Check back each Tuesday for the rest of the month for additional cheat sheets. This first sheet covers Suicide Risk Factors. The text is included below and a printable pdf version can be accessed by clicking the picture above.

Introduction

Risk Factors for suicide are those things about a person and their circumstances (many of which they have no control over) that statistically make them more predisposed to attempt suicide. They are different than warning signs which are specific behaviors which may indicate a person is contemplating suicide. It is important to consider both the warning signs (which are current and specific to an individual) and the risk factors (which are historic and based on a person’s circumstances and experiences) when assessing the risk of suicide.

I’ll probably date myself with this one, but back when I was growing up, there was a popular song about the relationship between kids and parents called “Parents Just Don’t Understand.” Nowhere is this more evident than when talking about disrupted families.

One of the issues we face in making people aware of the impact of divorce on kids is the general disconnect between how parents and other adults view how their kids react to a family disruption and how the kids react. Until we begin to truly see divorce from the child’s point of view, we cannot be in a position to minister to them.

Recently, a British site called NetMums.com recently surveyed 1,000 parents and 100 children about the impact of family disruption and the perceptions of both parents and kids. Their conclusion was simple:

“Our new report reveals separating parents are in denial about the impact their divorce can have on their children.”

If you’ve thought about suicide, or lost a loved one to suicide, you need to know that you’re not alone! If you currently feel hopeless, I urge you to call the suicide hotline at 1-800-273-8255, or you can send an anonymous email to jo@samaritans.org. Sometimes it helps just to write out what you’re feeling, and someone will respond.

Editor’s Note: Cindi is very open and honest in what follows about her own journey and speaks openly about suicide and attempts at suicide. While we commend her on her transparency and the associated message of hope, we also recognize that such a message can be difficult for some people to read. If you are one of those people, I encourage you to skip to the last paragraph and check out our Suicide Help Center for more information and helpful resources on the issue of suicide.

In the past, I have rarely ever mentioned the topic of suicide. The mere mention of the word would make my heart feel like it was going to beat out of my chest. Today, I choose to talk about suicide freely.

The Plague of Suicide

Many people believe that suicide is just a teen and adult issue, but rates of child suicide are rising. As society forces kids to grow up earlier and earlier, our fear is that we will only see these rates continue to increase. The graph above is from a CDC report on the death of kids aged 10-14 from 1999 through 2014 (QuickStats: Death Rates for Motor Vehicle Traffic Injury, Suicide, and Homicide Among Children and Adolescents aged 10–14 Years — United States, 1999–2014. MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep 2016;65:1203. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.15585/mmwr.mm6543a8). You can see from the graph that while auto accident deaths have decreased significantly and homicides have decreased slightly over that time period, the rate of death by suicide in these pre-teen and early teen children has MORE THAN DOUBLED.

If you know a child who is talking about suicide or showing suicidal tendencies, don’t ignore it! Find help today. Call the National Suicide Prevention Hotline at 1-800-273-8255 (TALK) and find a mental health professional in your area that can help with your child. Err on the side of caution and don’t assume that just because the child is young that suicide is not a possibility. Unfortunately, the statistics show that it is a very real possibility!

It was seven o’clock on a Friday evening when we had to call the police. No one had come to pick up Aaron that evening. His mom had dropped him off at my child care center Friday morning. She brought him in, signed him in, put his backpack on his hook and had left. All the things she normally did but she did not show up that evening.

We called the hospital where she worked, and she had not shown up for work that day. They had tried all day to reach her. We called all of the contacts on Aaron’s list before we called the police. No one knew where she was. This wasn’t like mom.

While we were waiting for the police to arrive many thoughts passed through my mind. I thought about Aaron’s first day at our facility. He had come to us with the diagnoses of Reactive Attachment Disorder, Oppositional Defiant Disorder and Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder. We had taken one look at this beautiful child, and our hearts had melted immediately.

Unbeknownst to us, he would become one of our most challenging children and one of our greatest success stories. Aaron was three years old, and one of the smartest little boys to ever enter our doors.

Sometimes the pressure and pain of life can make it seem almost unbearable. In those moments, many children, teens and young adults contemplate suicide. Many actually get to such a point of despair that they attempt suicide, and tragically way too many every year actually do take their own lives. Now, there is help! This booklet from The Hope Line titled Understanding Suicide is designed for those working with kids who may be contemplating suicide.

It includes sections on:

Myths & Truths

Risk Factors

The Most Common Methods of Suicide

Teen Suicide Warning Signs

How to Help a Suicidal Person

A Portrait in Words

When Support is available

If you know a hurting young person, this booklet will be a valuable resource! CLICK HERE to download a free copy of Understanding Suicide from The Hope Line!